Carmela Full of Wishes (Hardcover)

Staff Reviews

It's Carmela's birthday and she gets to spend it with her big brother, running errands in the neighborhood. Throughout the trip, she searches for the perfect wish. With her brother's help, she finds just that. de la Pena's language and Robinson's signature illustrations combine to create a timely book for everyone to enjoy.

— Cathy

Description

An Instant New York Times Bestseller!

In their first collaboration since the Newbery Medal- and Caldecott Honor-winning Last Stop on Market Street, Matt de la Peña and Christian Robinson deliver a poignant and timely new picture book that's sure to be an instant classic.

When Carmela wakes up on her birthday, her wish has already come true--she's finally old enough to join her big brother as he does the family errands. Together, they travel through their neighborhood, past the crowded bus stop, the fenced-off repair shop, and the panadería, until they arrive at the Laundromat, where Carmela finds a lone dandelion growing in the pavement. But before she can blow its white fluff away, her brother tells her she has to make a wish. If only she can think of just the right wish to make . . .

With lyrical, stirring text and stunning, evocative artwork, Matt de la Peña and Christian Robinson have crafted a moving ode to family, to dreamers, and to finding hope in the most unexpected places.

About the Author

Matt de la Peña is the Newbery Medal-winning author of Last Stop on Market Street. He is also the author of Love; A Nation's Hope: The Story of Boxing Legend Joe Louis; and six critically acclaimed young-adult novels. Matt teaches creative writing and visits schools and colleges throughout the country. Matt lives in Brooklyn, NY. You can visit Matt at mattdelapena.com or on Twitter @mattdelapena.

Christian Robinson is a 2016 Caldecott Honoree and also received a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor for his art in Last Stop on Market Street. His picture books include the Gaston and Friends series; Leo: A Ghost Story; School's First Day of School; The Smallest Girl in the Smallest Grade; Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker; and many more. You can visit Christian at theartoffun.com or on Instagram @theartoffun.

Praise For…

Praise for Carmela Full of Wishes:An Instant New York Times BestsellerAn Amazon Most Anticipated Fall Book – Ages 3 to 5An Amazon Best of the Month Pick October 2018 – Ages 3 to 5An Amazon Editor’s Gift Pick - Ages 3 to 5A Publishers Weekly Most Anticipated Children's Book - Fall 2018A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2018A Kirkus Reviews Best Picture Book of 2018A Boston Globe Best Children’s Book of 2018Four Starred Reviews★ "The award-winning team behind Last Stop on Market Street portrays Carmela’s Spanish-speaking community as a vibrant place of possibility, and Robinson’s acrylic-and-cutout spreads introduce readers to street vendors, workers in the fields, and sweeping views of the sea. Sensitively conceived and exuberantly executed, Carmela’s story shines."—Publishers Weekly, starred review

★ “Full of rich details, sharp and restrained writing, and acrylic paintings that look textured enough to rise off the page . . . Another near-perfect slice of life from a duo that has found a way to spotlight underrepresented children without forgetting that they are children first.”—Kirkus Reviews, starred review

★ “Carmela’s journey of wishing, waiting, and wanting resonates on many levels; an important addition to bookshelves everywhere."—School Library Journal, starred review

★ “[A] beautiful book about the love of siblings and community. . . . A must read for everyone.”—School Library Connection, starred review

Praise for Last Stop on Market Street:Winner of the 2016 Newbery MedalA 2016 Caldecott Honor BookA 2016 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor BookA New York Times Bestseller

“It’s also the warmth of their intergenerational relationship that will make this book so satisfying, for both young readers and the adults sharing it with them.”—The New York Times Book Review

★ “Like still waters, de la Peña and Robinson’s story runs deep. It finds beauty in unexpected places, explores the difference between what’s fleeting and what lasts, acknowledges inequality, and testifies to the love shared by an African-American boy and his grandmother.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Matt de la Peña’s warmhearted story is musical in its cadences…Christian Robinson’s angular, bright illustrations are energetic and vibrant... [A] celebration of the joys of service, the gifts of grandmothers and the tenderness that the city can contain.”—The Washington Post

★ “De la Peña and Robinson here are carrying on for Ezra Jack Keats in spirit and visual style. This quietly remarkable book will likely inspire questions… it will also have some adult readers reaching for a tissue.”—The Horn Book, starred review

“The sharp illustrations — in bold, and cheerful primaries — get CJ’s restless energy and curious postures exactly right. The voices of CJ and his grandmother carry the story along in subtle point and counterpoint so that at this book’s quiet close you feel like you’ve been listening to a song.”—The Boston Globe